The White House is reportedly hesitant to announce the move before November’s midterm elections, with affordability and inflation emerging as key issues in the voters’ minds.

Both President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers are facing pressure from American consumers and businesses, with the Republican’s relentless tariff obsession resulting in higher costs.

Although the administration has not decided to impose tariffs on refined copper products such as cathode, as well as copper concentrate produced at mine sites, the commodities’ prices have surged to record highs.

As per the reports, traders and industrial buyers have been rushing to build inventories in the United States to get ahead of any new duties, creating one of the world’s largest stockpiles ⁠of the metal.

Copper has entered Trump’s crosshairs, as the latter eyes a broader push into rebuilding American manufacturing and reducing reliance on foreign supplies of critical materials.

Copper is used in construction, transportation, electronics, and many other industries. S&P Global expects growth in the AI and defense sectors to boost global copper demand 50% by 2040.

Regarding Uncle Sam, the United States imports roughly half of its copper needs each year and only has two operational copper smelters, which are owned by Freeport-McMoRan and Rio Tinto, respectively.

While the Trump administration believes that the proposed tariffs could make imported copper pricier and improve the economics of American mining and smelting and refining projects, broader tariffs could also raise costs for manufacturers that rely on the metal, including producers of electrical equipment, automobiles, construction products, and other industrial goods.

The administrative dilemma around the tariff has also prevented the copper from flowing to markets outside the United States, further tightening the commodity’s global supply.

“As long as (tariff) policy ⁠remains unresolved, that possibility reduces the incentive to return metal to international markets,” said Jacob White, a minerals analyst at Sprott Asset Management, which invests in copper producers, while interacting with Reuters.

Trump, in 2025, imposed ⁠levies on pipes, wiring, and other semi-finished products, much to the chagrin of companies that mine copper itself.

Thereafter, he reportedly tasked Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to update him by June 2026 on copper markets and recommend whether to impose a 15% tariff starting on January 1, 2027, that would rise to 30% in 2028.

The United States’ refined copper imports have jumped 16-fold since 2015, even as production slipped 20%, according to the nation’s Geological Survey data. The world’s largest economy has nearly 30 years’ worth of supply within its borders.

Trump, since 2025, has pushed his administration to bolster domestic copper projects, including the Resolution Copper project in Arizona from BHP and Rio and the Twin Metals project in Minnesota from Antofagasta.

Trump also banned the export of electronic waste, which contains copper.

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